Sharonda Williams Rejoins Fishman Haygood as Special Counsel

Fishman Haygood, L.L.P. is pleased to announce that Sharonda Williams, Vice-President, General Counsel and Director of Government Affairs at Loyola University New Orleans, has rejoined the firm’s litigation section as special counsel. Williams practiced with Fishman Haygood from 2016 until 2021. She will retain her current position at Loyola, providing in-house counsel to the university and the board and working to build a legal team.

Williams’ distinguished career spans decades of both public service and private practice. She served as City Attorney for the City of New Orleans from May 2013 to November 2015 and as Chief Deputy City Attorney from October 2011 until May 2013. As City Attorney, Williams was the lead attorney handling the most comprehensive police consent decree in the history of the United States, as well as the consent decree aimed at reforming the Orleans Parish Jail. Both of those consent decrees required Williams to engage in negotiations with the United States Department of Justice on a near daily basis.

Prior to accepting her current position at Loyola University, Williams was a key player in Fishman Haygood’s litigation group. Among her engagements, she filed a lawsuit on behalf of the Orleans Parish School Board to force a local charter management organization to provide students with free bus transportation to and from its schools. She also represented the Vieux Carré Commission Foundation in a lawsuit, the first in the organization’s history, against the City of New Orleans after the City Council approved plans for a restaurant over the objections of French Quarter preservationists. Most recently, Williams joined the Fishman Haygood trial team on behalf of a client accused of legal malpractice, arguing for the exclusion of the plaintiff’s experts. The judge granted the motion and the case, which was set to be heard in Orleans Parish Civil District Court, was dismissed on summary judgment in favor of the firm’s client.

“The law has historically been a male-dominated profession, but when I think of leaders shaping the New Orleans legal community and beyond, the name that comes to mind is Sharonda Williams,” said Fishman Haygood Partner Lori Mince. “Her tenacity, determination, and commitment to ensuring that every voice is heard in both our profession and our broader community makes Sharonda the type of person you want on your side.”

“I have had the great pleasure to work with Sharonda in both the public and private sectors,” said Fishman Haygood Special Counsel John Bel Edwards. “When I was governor, I was honored when she accepted my appointment to serve on the Port of New Orleans board of commissioners. And now I am even more privileged to share the courtroom with her as a colleague. I have immense admiration and respect for Sharonda.”

Throughout her career, Williams has worked to address legal issues that affect women, children, families, and the African American community broadly. She is a past board president of Bridge House and was a Grace House Women of Substance honoree in 2009. She was among the 2011 New Orleans CityBusiness Women of the Year honorees and was recognized by the National Bar Association – Women Lawyers Division with the Outstanding Woman Lawyer Hidden Figure/Impact Award in 2019. Williams was also a member of the inaugural class of the Norman C. Francis Leadership Institute from 2012-2014, and she has served on the board of directors of the American Civil Liberties Union.

Williams currently serves as secretary-treasurer of the Port of New Orleans, secretary of the Urban League of Louisiana, and board member of the Federal Bar Association – New Orleans Chapter. From 2016-18, she was chair of the Board of Commissioners of the Regional Transit Authority, a position to which she was appointed by then New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu with the unanimous approval of the New Orleans City Council.

“Fishman Haygood was built on the value of excellence, and Sharonda is nothing short of excellent,” said Fishman Haygood Partner Jim Swanson. “She embodies everything that we strive to be as a firm and as community members, and we are thrilled to welcome her back.”

“I am excited to rejoin the Fishman Haygood team,” said Williams. “As special counsel, I hope to use my understanding of the law and affinity for community outreach to continue supporting the firm’s reputation for doing high-caliber, impactful work.”

Williams graduated from Loyola University New Orleans College of Law and was a member of the Loyola Law Review. She received a Bachelor of Science degree from Xavier University New Orleans.